BEIRUT, Lebanon, October 26 (Lebanonwire) -- Majority Parliament leader and Future Movement head Saad Hariri, son of slain former Premier Rafik Hairi, said Tuesday his country’s judiciary was ill equipped to handle future court proceedings against his father’s killers.

Speaking at a dual press conference with British Foreign Minister Jack Straw, Hariri said Lebanon’s court system was not yet up to the task of handling a complicated prosecution case against those who killed his dad in a massive blast last February15th.

“I do trust our judiciary to be fair, but just as we needed international help in conducting the assassination probe into Hariri’s murder, I believe that we also need international assistance in conducting future proceedings,” Hariri told reporters in London, adding “I just don’t think our judiciary has the experience.”

Hariri said that he was against the collective punishment of the Syrian people. “I just want to prosecute and punish the criminals who assassinated a country, not just Hariri,” Saad said.

Straw said his country would discuss imposing sanctions on Syria, a country implicated in the UN investigation, along with their US and French partners in the UN Security Council.

“Justice is all we are after,” Straw said.

Detlev Mehlis, the lead German investigator whose commission was officially extended until next December 15th, said the UN would assist Lebanon in any future court proceedings, during a briefing on his findings to the UN Security Council today.

“Lebanon will get all the technical assistance it will need as it determines the nature and location of the case to be prosecuted in court,” Mehlis said.

Mehlis said it was up to Lebanon to act on the findings of the new UN report that will be issued once “new evidence is unearthed and old and new witnesses are interrogated.”

“Lebanese officials will always benefit from our support either directly or through an official request to the UN,” Mehlis said.

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